John Bellany: Born in Port Seton in 1942, John Bellany is one of Scotland’s most
outstanding contemporary artists. His mother, Nancy, was an Eyemouth Maltman and his
father Richard was a fisherman from Port Seton. John spent much of his time in Eyemouth
as a boy - here is an extract from an interview he gave Phil Miller of The Herald last year to
commemorate his 70th birthday. “He spent a lot of time in Eyemouth. "It was filled with
wonder for me," he says. "There were so many things happening, apart from the fishing,
that your mind boggled. I was absorbing this, and it was a happy community. It was isolated
from the A1 and the route to England. That kind of closeness has been kept, really to the
present day.
There were incredible things to see – the shells and fishes were just lying there, the nets
were just lying there. Because it was the high point of the fishing industry, there were so
many boats you could walk across the harbour, from boat to boat. It was such an honour to
be fishermen then. Everyone looked up to you. But a lot of people were lost at sea, more
than you would think." “
Sarah Cox: Sarah is an artist living in the Scottish Borders, an area full of natural beauty
and inspiration. She paints images from the local area, capturing the wonder and
uniqueness of the places she visits, appreciating the subtleties of the natural environment
and trying to show this in the pieces she produces. As well as canvas, Sarah paints on
pebbles salvaged from rivers around the Borders. This enables the visitor to carry away with
them not only a visual memory of their visit but an integral part of the landscape.
Cara Lockhart Smith: Cara Lockhart Smith lives in the Scottish Borders. As well as
writing and illustrating books for children, she now paints in various media, and recently had
an exhibition of her work at Berwick Watchtower Gallery. She majored in Fine Art from
Sunderland University. Her work for children has been published in many different
countries, and has been translated into several languages. It includes picture books,
illustrated poetry books, children’s novels, and illustrations for the work of other authors,
especially for collections of folk tales. Parchment House, a gothic novel for children, was
given the Signal Award for best children’s novel of the year, and several books have been
picked for the publication Children’s Books of the Year. Recently she had work published by
Serafina Press of Eyemouth, including The Berwick Bear & His Fiddle, and Bear in a Boat in
the Borders. Cara has also created pictorial maps, including artwork for the Millennium map
of Berwick upon Tweed, theatrical posters for the Maltings in Berwick upon Tweed, and card
designs. The countryside and towns of North Northumberland and the Scottish Borders
have been an inspiration for much of her work for many years.
Jennifer T.Doherty: Born in the Lanarkshire town of Coatbridge in 1960, Jennifer spent
her childhood holidays in Eyemouth every year. After taking a degree in Arts at Glasgow
University, she worked in London in a variety of roles, eventually becoming a freelance
writer and trainer for many years. In 2004, she opened the Smokehouse Gallery, and
continues to be fascinated by the art and craft in the Borders region. In particular, she has
an enthusiasm for developing the Borders as a destination for writers – as a place in which
to relax, be inspired, and work.
Roger Harris: Spotted at Reston’s recent art exhibition, Roger was asked to exhibit his
piece ‘Cement Works, Dunbar’ – not an obvious choice for a subject but a lovely piece all the
same!
Richard Yeo: Richard has had a lifelong interest in the Roman era, especially its lingering
influence upon Caledonia and its Celtic tribes. His book Hadrian’s Trader is exhibited in our
gallery together with a wonderful collection of photographs of Roman intaglios found at
Trimontium (where Richard’s book is based). Richard lives at Lumsdaine Farm near
Coldingham. A naval officer for most of his career, he became a successful thatcher on
retirement. Ten years ago he spent a year working on organic farms in New Zealand and
now regards that country as his soul's home. Apart from writing he now makes a living as a
gardener and carpenter.
Sylvia Quinn Home: Sylvia has contributed seven pieces to our exhibition, all of Pease
Bay surfers. Sylvia explains her fascination with Pease Bay – “I love this quote from an
internet site called magicseaweed.com a surfer’s description of Pease Bay which is just up
the coast from Eyemouth. ‘Surprisingly long, peeling righthanders over sand and cobble at
the south end plus a left sandbar at north end. Often slow breaking but fun, accessible waves
that get fin-snappingly shallow as the tide drops out.’ I have to admit that having lived in
the Borders for over 30 years I only visited Pease Bay about 4 years ago. I was with an artist
friend who had been looking at rock strata, cross-country from Dorset to Berwickshire. I was
immediately impressed by the red sandstone strata of Pease Bay and that’s why I visited last
year with husband, a camera and some watercolours. I managed enough general shots of
the surfers and used them as starters for the paintings exhibited in this exhibition. The wet
suits are very graphic and I painted the figures flat without too much detail. I used the paint
more expressively when it came to painting the sea and with some of the smaller ones
applied the paint with a palette knife.”
Annabel Milne: Annabel has lived in the Scottish Borders for 28 years. She grew up in
Nigeria, the Caribbean and Malaysia which has influenced her use of colour and wild animals
as subjects. Annabel studied art at St. Martin’s College of Art in London and an MA in Fine
Art at Edinburgh College of Art & University. Her paintings and drawings include landscapes,
interiors and figures but the majority of her work focuses on animals - she is drawn to
depicting their natural movement and characteristic forms. Annabel is interested in the
very relevant conservational concerns about animals in the wild where man’s encroachment
on their natural habitat is threatening many species. She has been fortunate to be able to
study African and Caribbean animals in the wild and this has been a continual theme in her
work.
Fay Waddell: Fay is passionate about Gunsgreen House, Eyemouth. Built in 1753 by local
smuggler John Nisbet, and of John Adam design, the architecture of Gunsgreen House
includes secret hiding places where smuggled goods were kept. It was these secret hidey
holes that provided the inspiration for Fay’s children’s book ‘Secrets of the Smuggler’s
House’. Beautifully illustrated by Cara Lockhart Smith who is also exhibiting, Fay does not
think of herself as an author but her book has been sold all over the UK and beyond. During
the summer, Fay has been kind enough to impart her knowledge on smuggling through a
series of guided walks, details of which can be found elsewhere on this website.
Roni Butcher: Roni and her husband Paul moved from Edinburgh to Berwickshire in
1994 and they are still living in awe of their surroundings. Their lovely Black Labrador – who
is a regular visitor to our museum! – is responsible for her artwork since his love of ‘walkies’
has led Roni to the most breathtaking landscapes and seascapes on offer around Scotland’s
south-east coast.